Just a snapshot from me. A life in the day…read more It's an edge of town train station with tall chimney remnants of Ulster's flax mill past still visible on the Portadown skyline - flax (or linseed) is the naturally growing fibre that makes everything from bedsheets to table linen and underclothes. Linseed gives oil and other healthy derivatives. Most recently, Portadown was the site of the long-running Drumcree dispute, but that dispute is a damp squid now but it was different in the 1980's and 1990's over yearly marches by the Orange Order through the Catholic part of the town, which often sparked violence and protests. In the 1990s, the long running dispute escalated and prompted a massive security operation, drawing worldwide attention to Portadown for all the wrong reasons. Historically Portadown can trace its origins to the early 17th century Plantation of Ulster, and in the Victorian era, with the arrival of the railway I'm travelling on today, it became a major town. It had the nickname "hub of the North" due to it being a major railway junction; where the Great Northern Railway's line diverged for Belfast, Dublin, Armagh and Derry. In the 19th and 20th centuries Portadown was also a major centre for the production of textiles, mainly linen. Linen wasn't just an industry it was a way of life all over the Northern Ireland statelet that gave us model villages like Bessbrook which couldn't have a pub built in the village and while Quaker's like the Cadbury family were becoming multi millionaires from chocolate the Quaker linen barons were becoming the super rich of the day in Ulster. Meanwhile Harland & Woolf were becoming super rich from heavy engineering in Belfast. Cadbury like other Quaker chocolate magnates (Rowntree and Fry) saw drinking chocolate as a drink for men who abstained from alcohol (women weren't mentioned back then) with a now deceased quasi religious cult leader here naming booze the Devil's buttermilk. Personally I've never met the devil. Quakers here built houses for their workers with electricity and a water supply way back when it was unheard of - all taken for granted now for many years. They gave workers a sense of pride in work - and work is still intrinsic to human nature in the west - again the Germans had a sign above the entrance of Auschwitz and other Nazi concentration camps: Arbeit macht frei; the German phrase means "Work sets you free" or "Work makes one free". Those who entered these places certainly met the Devil. Such was the power of the Quakers throughout the UK they dictated when the families that worked for them went to bed and woke - they controlled the electricity supply in their model villages. It's as well these good folks were decent and honest in themselves - again honesty and decency were taken for granted back then too - moral fibre. If you look into 10 Downing St today or 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue DC in 2020 you couldn't find it with a sieve. So I sit musing on a train with a cafe Krem flat white on the outskirts of Portadown. We all sit apart and away. We are on hopefully the tail end of Wu flu but it's as unclear and fragile as most things now, just like democracy.

Adelaide Station is a suburban railway halt on the Portadown - Lisburn - Bangor line where you'd…read moredisembark were you to travel to Lisburn Road by train. It's at the end of a quiet residential street near the fashionable shops and you can also get to the Boucher Road retail park from here. There's no ticket office and only one shelter on the platform. While you wait the Enterprise to Dublin may glide swiftly past you. Basically Adelaide is useful for resident, commuters and pupils at Victoria College nearby and with the right timing taking the train to the city centre - Central Station or Victoria - beats crawling down the Lisburn Road by bus.

Another snapshot from a railway station. This time my home town is the muse…read more OK, so I'm going to be biased in favour of my fabulous home town. It's my roots, deep roots, a town over 1,000 years old with the oldest hand excavated canal in the United Kingdom and the first post reformation Presbyterian church in Ireland. Nine tenths of all who have lived are dead: we all walk on the bones of our ancestors. I still smile when I quote the bitter couplet about my home town by Swift, the author of Gulliver's Travels, he was a harsh, Rhadamanthus like, judge of human nature: High Church, low steeple, Dirty streets and proud people. And while he observed this over 300 years ago, his observations still remain mostly true - although in Gerard Loughran we have one of the best street cleaners in the country. I remember when Newry railway station went right into and through the centre of our town - part of the site is where Translink now garage their bus fleet. The steam trains also chugged their way through town to Warrenpoint and the sea. As a child I often played in the town centre railway station. Often I was scooped up by the firemen from the station platform in Newry centre and placed into the smoky, noisy, hot heart of the action, as we hissed and clickety clacked through the country side to the sea with the wind offering some relief against intense heat and stinking sulphur of red hot burning coal. The arms that scooped me up fed the insatiable beast with hunks of coal nearly as big as me. I was in awe of these gentle giants of sooty men who wore blue boiler suits, heavy linen shirts, with sleeves rolled up, steel toe-capped, thick laced, chunky, black leather boots and engineers caps. All this childhood joy came to an end for me at the malicious hands of Dr Beeching. He became a household name in the UK in the early 1960s for his report The Reshaping of British Railways, commonly referred to as "The Beeching Report", which led to far-reaching destructive changes in the railway network, popularly known as "the Beeching Axe". This thug, who was made a Baron by the Tories (some things never change), ignored the dire social consequences of cutting 4,000 miles of railways. Decisions that still rankle in many communities today. So this branch of Newry railway station opened in 1855 and it is now the town's main station located in the northwest of Newry on the main Dublin-Belfast line. It's close to the beautiful and spectacular Craigmore Viaduct, an 18 arch stone and iron construction that sweeps across the valley of the Camlough River and carries the Belfast to Dublin railway line that also goes over the nearby Egyptian Arch - so named because of its resemblance to the nemes headdress worn by Ancient Egyptian pharaohs. The bridge (and the arch) was designed by John Benjamin Macneill, an eminent Irish civil engineer, with construction beginning in 1849 and the viaduct formally opened in 1852, just before the industrial revolution began. Just 34 years earlier Dom Pérignon laid down the rules for champagne production and Just imagine it opened in the midst of the French Revolution, within 10 years Catherine the Great would rule Russia, inside 20 years Russians would be the first Europeans to colonise Alaska and within 24 years America would strike for independence. The highest of the viaduct's arches is 126ft, making Craigmore the highest viaduct in Ireland; another Newry first. It is around a quarter of a mile long and is a prominent feature in the south Armagh landscape rainbow lit for Newry Pride every August and purple lit for the NHS. The railway station is 166 years old now, outlasting Beeching who is only a sour footnote in history and my childhood; I do hope he's buried under a busy railway line.

Was on my way to Dublin from Belfast when I realised I'd forgotten my phone. Got off at Newry…read morestation with the intention of going back to Belfast to retrieve it. Instead a really helpful station worker, Steven, kindly lent me his phone in order to ring my daughter who drove to the station with my phone. Stevens helpfulness saved me a lot of time and hassle!!

Very nice travel hub! Very modern and plenty of rest and food options…read more Everything is clean and clearly marked. The information booth took the time to explain what we needed to do to make our connecting train. If you have a choice in train stations this is then one you want.

Belfast station is located in Northern Ireland, UK. Coming from Dublin, there were no border…read morepassport control when I visited. They have nice size clean and free restroom, they had coffee stand which was open at 8pm but they had a bar which was closed at 7:30pm. They have an ATM machine available for those like me, who wasn't thinking that this is a part of UK. I was so stupid and wasn't thinking when I left Dublin hotel in the morning. I thought I would leave pound sterling so I didn't have to carry unnecessary cash with me. They have elevator for those with luggage or for those in needs. Plenty of seating available at waiting area, not sure about free wifi but clean station is always nice.

It's got a shelter and a car park. Really not much else to say about it…read more It's beside a park and handy parking for Moseley mill theatre.

Mossley West railway station was reopened nine years ago and the train line could finally be used…read moreby the public after many years in disuse. Mossley platform is great for those travelling to Antrim, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Coleraine etc as this provides a quick, direct line for them to get to work or university etc. Because of this schedule it means the train can be very busy in the mornings and evenings, also on a Sunday when the hordes of students travel back up to university. The train that usually runs on this line is one of the newer trains which makes your journey that little bit more quick and comfortable. It's also one of the most scenic train journeys. The beautiful Northern Irish country side flys past you, especially in the Spring when all the lambs are being born and you can see them bounce about the fields. Not bad for a train line I must say.

Botanic Train Station is small but conveniently located on Botanic Avenue, so if you work near…read moreabout or study at Queen's University Belfast it's perfect. Personally I've always found staff and conductors helpful and pleasant. Being teeny don't expect it to have too much in the way of facilities (e.g. there are no toilets) but it has the essentials such as a maned ticket counter, paper timetables on display and two covered platforms. Located on Botanic there are a plethora of cafes, convenience stores and restaurants nearby. It's handy for getting to different parts of Belfast as a train from here can take you to Central Train Station, Great Victoria Street, Titanic Quarter or City Hospital. If you're going further afield you'll find some good off peak deals, for example a day return off peak ticket to Bangor is just £5.70 (March 2016). My one major criticism is that here in Northern Ireland it's a shame our trains don't have late night services, as last train journeys all seem to be around 10pm or 11pm. Fingers crossed this may change in the future.

I'm sorry but I point-blank refuse to give Translink or anything to do with them more than 2/5…read more They are truely dreadful, and as I have even said in other reviews I actually think they're an embrassment to Northern Ireland. My girlfriend is English and she simply can't believe how bad public transport is in this country and its all down to these monopolising idiots who are money grabbing opportunists at best and psuedo war-profiteers at worst. This particular station is extremely handy if you go to Queen's. Its only two minutes down the road so if you study at Queens you will be getting on or off at this station at some stage. The station is also good access to the Ulster Museum, though its probably 50/50 if this place is closer than City Hospital. Its tidy and clean but has no other amenities. This is probably due to the fact there is a Spar right beside it. One last point is that they always ask for your student card, even if you get the train every day. Pointless.

Loved it. Historic and timeless. It opened in 1848 with must building done in the early 1900's mock…read moreTudor style and still standing. It has a wonderful footbridge built by Walter MacFarlane's Saracen Foundry in Glasgow. They specialised in on street drinking fountains, bandstands, lamp standards and made elegance part of their designs creating artistic utility. A lot of staff were in the station to help and I got darn good coffees from a cafe within. I think I paid just over £6 for very good cappuccino from a friendly barista. The toilet facilities are well maintained. Isn't living history fascinating oh and I mentioned the Tudors 1485 to 1603. They were the first to introduce a minimum wage into the UK.

Antrim Station is like flippin' Ghost Town epitomised...honestly, it's the wierdest place…read more Obviously passengers are constantly going through it, and getting on and off trains, but the actual station itself is completely lacking in, well, just about everything. It is very reminiscent of Lisburn Station, with its red brick walls, retro porch style areas, and olde worlde charm, but it's completely dead. When we got off the train, there was no-one in the ticket booth / information point, and we had no clue as to where we were going, so that wasn't very helpful. It ended up we walked the whole way round to the town centre, on a route that took us twice as long as the more direct road. Excellent...particularly when it starts raining, and you're got on your Sun Shimmer and a short sleeved cardie. Speckled arms, anyone? That aside, we did mind to find our way back (just about...can we not have some signs up people?!), and had a bit of a wait for a train to Belfast. No-one was around when we got there - no conductors, no passengers, no nothing. I had a quick peek in the ticket booth, and it seemed pretty dead too. We dandered over to the far side of the station, and hoped to sit in the inside waiting area, only to discovered it was closed. Oh joy. Luckily I had a few tissues, so mopping up excess rain water from the bench wasn't an issue. Once the train came (Antrim features on the Belfast to Londonderry / Derry line), my sister and I were more than relieved to be on our way home. Thankfully there was a break in the rain, so we managed to stay dry for our wait, thank goodness. Still, that'll teach me to reach for the wash off tan...

Hey, it's a public bus station. If you came here to be…read moreimpressed or swaddled in the lap of luxury then you were out of order. Adjust your expectations accordingly and read on (smile). Bearing that in mind the buses are on time, the kiosk are in working order and the place is relatively clean. I am also fairly certain that there are working toilets there if you need them. The station is in the heart of Belfast and I saw that a few bus lines operate out of this hub. There are three things I really appreciated about this bus station. Unlike some bus stations in the US, there are: First, no homeless people camping out here or begging. Second, no rats running around. Finally, no obvious pimps attempting to pick up young innocent run aways. So they get a few more stars for just being a decent place for humans to simply board a bus.

Great Victoria Street station, in terms of facilities, is pretty much what you would expect from a…read morestation in a city like Belfast but it is a bit cramped and crowded. It is attached to the Europa bus station and is a 5 minute walk away from the city centre which is pretty good but it is a wee bit far out. In the station building there is a WHSmith, a coffee shop, some seats, a ticket office and some toilets. There are four platforms serving the Larne, Londonderry, Portadown and Bangor lines on the NI Railways network. I am pretty sure the Dublin trains will be moved here in the future as well. The staff here are not rude, but they don't really engage with people, for example, the man on the ticket barrier was very robotic, just letting people through once they have flashed a blue NIR ticket at him. There isn't really anything wrong with GVS station but there isn't anything exceptionally good about it to warrant a 4 star review. The convenient connection to Europa bus station is great, especially if you are transferring between services, and the statue of the two women outside on the street is quite interesting, but otherwise it is just a train station which happens to be the main one in Belfast.

Whiteabbey Station is basically just a little halt on the Larne to Belfast line. I would never…read moreusually have had much dealings with it, apart from when I was a student at Newtownabbey Tech, a number of years ago. I have various 'happy' memories of trudging in the rain up the road to the college from this station, and even happier memories of the days when we 'forgot' to get off at Whiteabbey, and continued on up to Belfast for a day of procrastination. The platforms have decent sized shelters and benches on both sides, with flights of steps on either side leading up to the walkways to enter/access the platforms. There is also a good sized car park for commuters to use, should they not wish to drive all the way into the city centre. There is no ticket booths here, nor have I ever seen a conductor, so it's just a case of hopping on and purchasing your ticket on the train, should you not already have one.

Whiteabbey Train Station was opened in 1848 and has recently been renovated and now includes a…read moregreat new parking space. This means it's much handier for those who avail of the park and ride service. The parking facility here was minimal before this rebuild but it seems a lot more secure and safe now which will keep many drivers at east. The platform itself isn't up to much, it's pretty basic but that's all you need. It is great having the train station in the area as there's no other stop between Whiteabbey and Belfast. From Mondays to Saturdays on the Larne line there is a half-hourly service towards Carrick with one train an hour continuing to Larne and a half-hourly service to Belfast Central. One thing that baffles me is that the train doesn't stop here on the way to Derry. I used to get this train every week up to Coleraine university and had to travel to Mossley West (see review) even through the train passes through this station. Platform 1 takes you in to Belfast and Platform 2 takes you to CArrickfergus / Larne. Check translink website or call for train times and more info.